Fred Wilpon (Madoff Suit)

News about Fred Wilpon (Madoff Suit), including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Jan. 25, 2015

Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred defends appointment of Fred Wilpon, majority owner of New York Mets, as chairmen of MLB's finance committee. MORE

May. 13, 2014

Saul B Katz, who owns a majority share of the New York Mets in a partnership with his brother-in-law and business partner, Fred Wilpon, has expressed a desire to sell his portion of the team because he has grown tired of spending millions to prop it up; has reportedly been hesitant to sell because it could jeopardize Wilpon’s continuing control of the team. MORE

Jul. 16, 2013

New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon extols the team's finances and future during news conference, even as the franchise wrestles with its financial obligations and seeks to get out from under some onerous player contracts. MORE

May. 29, 2013

Harvey Araton On Baseball column asserts that New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon is sending wrong message to fans by not being more visible as team struggles to save season. MORE

Dec. 3, 2012

James F McCann, founder of 1-800-Flowers.com, world's leading floral and gift retailer recently accused of defrauding its customers, acknowledges that he now owns a minority share of New York Mets; it is unclear if Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz knew of the company's alleged wrongdoings. MORE

Apr. 15, 2012

Irving H Picard, the trustee seeking money for the victims of Bernard L Madoff’s fraud, says it would have been difficult to recover any more than $162 million from New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz. MORE

Mar. 22, 2012

New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz are starting to get their financial house in order, completing the sale of shares in the team for $240 million and repaying millions in loans shortly before they settled the lawsuit with the trustee for the Madoff victims. MORE

Mar. 21, 2012

Harvey Araton On Baseball column asserts that New York Mets fans will remain loyal to owner Fred Wilpon only if he produces a winning team. MORE

Mar. 20, 2012

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column holds that the New York Mets' beleaguered owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz acted rationally by reaching a settlement with the trustee managing the Madoff bankruptcy; notes that deal averts significant bad press for the Mets as the team tries desperately to find minority investors to shore up its debts. MORE

Mar. 20, 2012

Analysis of the settlement between the New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, and Irving H Picard, the trustee for Bernard L Madoff's victims; notes that the former adversaries are now on the same side because Picard can help the team by recouping up to $178 million for the club from so-called net winners. MORE

Mar. 19, 2012

Federal Court Judge Jed S Rakoff's ruling that burden of proof is on the New York Mets owners at trial to show they had acted in good faith may be enough to compel the beleaguered club to settle with the trustee for victims of Bernard L Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. MORE

Mar. 18, 2012

Some New York Mets fans at team's spring training base say they are fed up with owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, and are actually rooting against them as federal court prepares to determine their fate in suit brought against them by the trustee representing the Madoff victims. MORE

Mar. 16, 2012

Wall Street veteran Noreen Harrington, whose tip in 2003 sparked a major investigation of mutual funds by New York attorney general's office, testifies that she warned New York Mets owners about investing further with Bernard L Madoff. MORE

Mar. 15, 2012

Federal Judge Jed S Rakoff rules that New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz must show that they did not turn a blind eye to 'red flags' that Bernard L Madoff was engaged in illegal activity. MORE

Mar. 8, 2012

Baseball will be in for something new when the owners of the New York Mets go to court to face charges they enriched themselves with illegitimate profits from the Madoff scam; for Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, jurors' feelings about the rich, both pro and con, could color their decision-making process. MORE

Mar. 6, 2012

Federal Judge Jed S Rakoff rules that New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz must pay up to $83 million to the victims of Bernard L Madoff, and go to trial on the gravest accusation that they turned a blind eye to evidence of fraud during their many years of profitable investing with him. MORE

Feb. 28, 2012

Tyler Kepner On Baseball column notes that it is clear by New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon's remarks that Bernard L Madoff could be a figure whose association with Wilpon unwittingly forces an important change in team operations. MORE

Feb. 27, 2012

Federal Judge Jed S Rakoff refuses to rule on motions for summary judgement brought by both sides in lawsuit against New York Mets owners; by not ruling, Rakoff lets suspense build about the case, which is scheduled to go to trial March 19; trustee for victims of Bernard Madoff is suing to recover as much as $386 million from Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz. MORE

Feb. 21, 2012

Irving H Picard, the court-appointed trustee for victims of Bernard Madoff who is suing New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, points to evidence of the men’s implausibly unyielding faith in Madoff’s steady investment returns, and the men’s dependence on those returns to help finance their businesses and deepen their personal wealth. MORE

Feb. 11, 2012

Noreen Harrington, a chief officer for a hedge fund owned in part by New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, says she shared her concerns about Bernard L Madoff’s investment performance with her superiors; the men have been accused of improperly benefiting from their relationship with Madoff over years of investing with him, and of ignoring evidence he might have been engaged in wrongdoing. MORE

Feb. 7, 2012

Former stockbrocker John Maine is the sole expert witness for New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, as they battle accusations by the trustee for Bernard L Madoff’s victims that they turned a blind eye; submits report that investors like Wilpon and Katz would have no reason to suspect Madoff. MORE

Jan. 18, 2012

Ruling by a federal Judge Jed S Rakoff against the Madoff trustee makes it appear likely that a lawsuit seeking money from the owners of the New York Mets will move to a jury trial. MORE

Dec. 21, 2011

Owners of the New York Mets are searching for approximately 10 investors to buy $20 million, minority stakes in the team; noncontrolling interest would come with a variety of perks; owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz are seeking investment to compensate for $70 million in losses in 2011. MORE

Dec. 13, 2011

New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz reveal that they have received a $40 million loan from a major bank, which they describe as a bridge loan meant to aid the team as it tries to raise money through the sale of minority stakes in the club; Wilpon and Katz received a $25 million loan from Major League Baseball in 2010 that has not yet been repaid. MORE

Oct. 15, 2011

New York Mets owners Saul Katz and Fred Wilpon are seeking to avoid a jury trial in case filed against them by Irving H Picard, trustee for the victims of Bernard L Madoff's fraud, indication that they feel confident in rolling the dice with Judge Jed S Rakoff. MORE

Sep. 28, 2011

US District Court Judge Jed S Rakoff rules that $1-billion lawsuit may proceed in case brought against New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz by Bernard L Madoff trustee Irving H Picard, but limits amount of potential judgment that may be awarded. MORE

Sep. 23, 2011

One billion dollar lawsuit filed by Irving Picard, trustee representing victims of Bernard L Madoff fraud, against New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz reveals much about histories and personalities of team's owner, and how they made and managed their money. MORE

Sep. 23, 2011

Sworn testimony of Arthur Friedman, business partner of New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, gives account of Securities and Exchange Commission investigations into Bernard L Madoff fraud. MORE

Aug. 20, 2011

Federal District Judge Jed S Rakoff raises prospect that all or part of $1 billion lawsuit brought against New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz by the trustee for victims of Bernard Madoff’s epic fraud could wind up being decided in a public trial before a jury; Rakoff may be trying to encourage a settlement. MORE

Aug. 20, 2011

George Vecsey Sports of The Times column examines struggles for New York Mets organization on the field and in the courtroom as owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz face lawsuit over their involvement with financier Bernie L Madoff. MORE

Aug. 17, 2011

Federal appeals court ruling could force New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz to pay at least $300 million to trustee for victims of Bernard L Madoff's fraud. MORE

Jul. 27, 2011

Irving H Picard, trustee for the victims of Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme, details in legal filing his strategy for asking court to evaluate the conduct of New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz. MORE

Jul. 7, 2011

Federal district judge Jed S Rakoff moves the case against the New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz, filed by Bernard L Madoff fraud victims' trustee Irving H Picard, from bankruptcy court; Rakoff, known for his independent streak, could dismiss all of part of the $1 billion lawsuit against Wilpon and Katz. MORE

May. 29, 2011

William C Rhoden Sports of The Times column asserts that New York Mets principal owner Fred Wilpon has alienated fans as the club struggles financially, and now he has perhaps alienated his players with critical remarks. MORE

May. 28, 2011

Tyler Kepner On Baseball column criticizes New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon as cowardly for retreating behind a wall of privilege after making antagonizing comments about his players and staff. MORE

May. 25, 2011

Embattled New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon apologizes for making disparaging remarks about his star players and the team in general in a magazine article. MORE

May. 24, 2011

Harvey Araton On Baseball column on New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon complaining about three of the Mets marquee players in a magazine article; asserts that Wilpon's assessment of his team fails to recognize management’s role in the Mets failures. MORE

May. 24, 2011

New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon’s criticisms of his players and the team in New Yorker magazine article are received with surprise and disappointment. MORE

May. 24, 2011

Irving H Picard, trustee for Ponzi victims of Bernard L Madoff, insists that New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz are hiding countless documents from investigators. MORE

May. 23, 2011

Tyler Kepner On Baseball column notes that a profile in The New Yorker shows that New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon still follows his team with the critical eye of late New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner in his prime. MORE

May. 20, 2011

Documents show that in 2001, New York Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz considered buying fraud insurance to protect the millions they invested with Bernard L Madoff, undermining their claim that they were oblivious to any wrongdoing. MORE

May. 7, 2011

William C Rhoden Sports of The Times column contrasts financial troubles and ownership controversies concerning Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets; suggests that a significant difference in the MLB's handling of the two teams is that Mets owner Fred Wilpon is a friend of baseball commissioner Bud Selig and Dodgers owner Frank McCourt is not. MORE

Mar. 19, 2011

Irving Picard, trustee representing victims of Bernard L Madoff Ponzi's scheme, says questionable offer of a loan by Madoff in 2004 should have tipped New York Mets owners to his fraud. MORE